Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) Short Interest Up 22.6% in August

Key Points

• As of August 31st, Novo Nordisk A/S experienced a significant increase in short interest, reaching 25,780,000 shares, a 22.6% rise from the previous total.
• Several analysts have upgraded or downgraded their ratings for Novo Nordisk, with a consensus rating of "Hold" and a price target of $81.00.
• The company reported a quarterly EPS of $0.97, surpassing expectations, while also announcing a semi-annual dividend yielding 240.0% for shareholders.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totaling 25,780,000 shares, an increase of 22.6% from the August 15th total of 21,020,000 shares. Currently, 0.6% of the company's shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 15,750,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.6 days. Based on an average trading volume of 15,750,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.6 days. Currently, 0.6% of the company's shares are sold short.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NVO has been the topic of several recent research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 9th. Dbs Bank raised shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. BNP Paribas Exane raised shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $54.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Barclays reissued an "equal weight" rating on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $81.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in NVO. Copeland Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 184.8% in the 1st quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 393 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 255 shares during the period. North Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in Novo Nordisk A/S in the first quarter worth $27,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Stone House Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in the first quarter worth $30,000. Finally, NewSquare Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 174.1% in the second quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 444 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 282 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 11.54% of the company's stock.

Novo Nordisk A/S Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of NVO traded down $0.60 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $61.25. 8,550,806 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,944,888. The stock's 50-day moving average is $57.03 and its 200-day moving average is $65.62. The company has a market cap of $273.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.66. Novo Nordisk A/S has a fifty-two week low of $45.05 and a fifty-two week high of $129.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a current ratio of 0.78.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.97 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $11.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $77.51 billion. Novo Nordisk A/S had a net margin of 35.60% and a return on equity of 78.64%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 18th were paid a dividend of $0.4119 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 240.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 18th. Novo Nordisk A/S's payout ratio is 22.53%.

About Novo Nordisk A/S

Novo Nordisk A/S, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the research and development, manufacture, and distribution of pharmaceutical products in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, North America, and internationally. It operates in two segments, Diabetes and Obesity Care, and Rare Disease.